Financial losses from treating COVID-19 patients could devastate health care sector, experts say
HOUSTON – (April 2, 2020) –The federal government’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES) includes hundreds of billions of dollars of funding for the health care sector, but with health care facilities facing unprecedent expenditures, that might not be enough, according to an economics expert at Rice University and a physician at Texas Children's Hospital.
The cost of caring for COVID-19 patients is predicted to exceed that of typical insurance reimbursement in part because of steps required to prevent the spread of the disease, according to a new blog post by Vivian Ho, the James A. Baker III Institute Chair in Health Economics at Rice, and Dr. Heidi Russell, a physician at Texas Children's Hospital and associate professor at Baylor College of Medicine.
The legislation adds $100 billion in funds to the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund to pay health care providers for expenses or lost revenues attributable to the coronavirus. The funds are only to be used to reimburse for expenses and lost revenues that have not been repaid from other sources. Eligible health care providers comprise for-profit, not-for-profit and public entities as well as Medicare- or Medicaid-enrolled suppliers and providers that deliver diagnoses, testing or care to individuals with possible or actual cases of COVID-19.
Before the outbreak, administrative costs totaled about 8% of all health care spending, the researchers said. "Currently, administrative needs like planning how patients will be tested and where coronavirus patients will be treated as well as allocating limited space and PPE (personal protective equipment) resources are taking up a larger percentage," they wrote.
Smaller community hospitals, particularly those in rural areas, will be equipped to manage only the mildest cases of COVID-19, the researchers said. Transferring sicker patients to larger centers prepared for the most intensely ill will cause additional strain on already overloaded facilities.
"Patients with underlying illnesses, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and heart disease, are always more complicated and costlier to care for," the researchers wrote. "These are the majority of patients being hospitalized with COVID-19."
Given that hospital and physician expenditures represented $1.9 trillion in spending in 2018, $100 billion may be "woefully inadequate" to compensate health care providers for unreimbursed expenses and lost revenue from the pandemic, the researchers said.
“The COVID-19 pandemic is changing the U.S. health care system,” the researchers concluded. “Our communities, medical providers and health care facilities are responding in an unprecedented manner to prevent the system from collapsing.
“The extraordinarily high health care costs resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic will force a new debate regarding how much health care providers should be reimbursed for their services, why U.S health care costs are so high, and what amount taxpayers are willing to accept in order to maintain national health security.”
Ho is also a professor in the Department of Economics at Rice and a professor in the Department of Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. Her research examines the effects of economic incentives and regulations on the quality and costs of health care.
For more information, contact Avery Franklin, media relations specialist at Rice, at averyrf@rice.edu or 713-348-6327.
Founded in 1993, Rice University’s Baker Institute ranks as the No. 2 university-affiliated think tank in the world. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows, Rice University faculty scholars and staff, coupled with its outreach to the Rice student body through fellow-taught classes — including a public policy course — and student leadership and internship programs. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blog.bakerinstitute.org.
Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,962 undergraduates and 3,027 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 4 for quality of life by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance.
Responding to Covid-19: How to Navigate a Public Health Emergency Legally and Ethically
Early-view essay in the Hastings Center Report, March-April 2020
Few novel or emerging infectious diseases have posed such vital ethical challenges so quickly and dramatically as the novel coronavirus. An early-view essay in the March-April 2020 Hastings Center Report offers guidance at a time when health care institutions and governments are desperately confronting these challenges. The authors are Prof. Lawrence O. Gostin, director of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University, director of the WHO Center on Global Health Law, and a Hastings Center fellow; Eric A. Friedman, the Global Health Justice Scholar at the O’Neill Institute; and Sarah A. Wetter, a law fellow with the O’Neill Institute. Their essay addresses these vital questions as the United States responds to the Covid-19 pandemic: When the health system becomes stretched beyond capacity, how can we ethically allocate scarce health goods and services? How can we ensure that marginalized populations can access the care they need?What ethical duties do we owe to vulnerable people separated from their families and communities?How do we ethically and legally balance public health with civil liberties? The full text of the essay, “Responding to Covid-19: How to Navigate a Public Health Emergency Legally and Ethically,” is available for free. “How we respond to this pandemic, whether we act ethically and safeguard the most vulnerable among us, will be a test of our humanity,” Gostin said. “Everyone will suffer, and many will die, in the coming months, but those who are unemployed, uninsured, poor, or disabled will suffer most. As a society, we have an ethical duty to do all we can to meet the needs of the most disadvantaged among us.”To ethically allocate scarce goods and services, the authors point to a “World War II-style mobilization” and call on the president “to exercise his full authority under the Defense Production Act to mobilize industry to project urgently needed resources.”The authors discuss steps that should be taken to ensure that marginalized populations, like people with disabilities and people of color, receive a fair distribution of scarce resources. “In addition to identifying specific groups that need special care, ethical distribution requires a fair process in deciding,” they write. That process should include the public and must be transparent and grounded in scientific evidence. Fair distribution is not only a national issue but also a global one. “Globally, lower‐income countries will face much more scarcity than wealthier states and, if Covid‐19 takes hold, a higher burden of disease,” they write. “The United States is ethically obligated to assist—even if this means reducing American stockpiles—to maximally protect and equally value all human life.” The essay offers several recommendations for protecting vulnerable populations, including under- and uninsured persons and immigrants, and assuring that they have access to care. Among the recommendations is this: “Governments must assure that Covid‐19 testing and care, and vaccines and treatment once available, are free so that cost does not cause anyone to delay or avoid care.” The authors address the economic and social disruption that results from physical distancing, quarantine, and other measures to control the spread of infections. To balance public health and civil liberties, they write, “a basic rule is that governments should employ the least restrictive means necessary to protect public health.” That standard should “be based on rigorous scientific assessment of risk and effectiveness.” Further, “containment measures must not be a subterfuge for discrimination.” “At a time of vast inequities, we are all only as safe as the most vulnerable among us—both in the United States and globally,” the essay concludes. “We are in uncharted territory, where vital human connections and economic activity are disrupted in ways not seen in generations. If we want to safeguard the public’s health while being faithful to our most fundamental values, then we must ensure that our response is effective, ethical, and equitable.”
OMA Urges Governments to Distribute Personal Protective Equipment and Critical Care Supplies Now
TORONTO, April 2, 2020 /CNW/ - The Ontario Medical Association is urging immediate government action to distribute personal protective equipment and critical supplies to community-based physicians and other health-care workers in medical clinics, long-term care facilities, primary care practices and other community-based organizations.
Across Ontario, community-based physicians have been flagging, for several weeks, the need for protective equipment and supplies. A growing number are reporting that they have little or no PPE. As a result, they have had no choice but to dramatically reduce in-person visits or use homemade masks. Others who have no PPE have closed their clinics and are only doing virtual or telephone visits.
"Every day, we are hearing from community doctors that there is a critical shortage of personal protective equipment. Many clinics will soon have to close to ensure the safety of their staff and themselves. This puts providers and the patients in these communities at risk. It also increases the pressure on hospitals, which again increases the risks to patients. We need urgent action now," said OMA President Dr. Sohail Gandhi.
To date, 10 percent of all COVID-19 positive patients in Ontario are health care providers. It is vital that health care providers stay healthy to provide care to those who may contract the virus in the future, but also to ensure that we are able to continue to effectively care for patients who have other acute health care needs.
More than 1879 doctors recently responded to an OMA survey confirming an immediate need for PPE supplies in the community. About 72 percent of respondents reported that they had a fewer than 5-day supply of surgical/procedure masks. Over 87 percent reported that they had a fewer than 5-day supply of eye shields. A number of respondents answered that they had 0 days' supply of various items.
Evidence has demonstrated that asymptomatic transmission can occur. The risk to patients and health care workers is unknown. Coupled with this, community transmission is also happening. These two factors have made it difficult to screen out suspected COVID-19 cases. This poses a real dilemma for clinicians if they cannot maintain a safe distance, particularly if they need to physically examine a patient.
Patients with certain chronic and other conditions need in-person medical care as part of their health care management. Others, such as infants and young children, need immunizations and minor procedures. Without access to that in-person care in the community, the only alternative is to visit the Emergency Department, and this is counter-productive to efforts to increase hospital capacity for a potential COVID-19 surge. Patients who have delayed care for their conditions may get sicker and may be hospitalized. This will take up needed beds and places the patient at risk for infections, including COVID-19.
"We applaud the PPE drives that are growing across the province. These efforts reinforce the seriousness of this issue. While we are hopeful this will partially help the situation, the real solution is for government to immediately move PPE and Critical Supply to all front-line community health care workers across all levels of patient care." said Dr. Gandhi.
About the OMA
The Ontario Medical Association represents Ontario's 43,000 plus physicians, medical students and retired physicians, advocating for and supporting doctors while strengthening the leadership role of doctors in caring for patients. Our vision is to be the trusted voice in transforming Ontario's health-care system.
SOURCE Ontario Medical Association
CoBank Quarterly: Global Pandemic, Economic Hibernation Disorient Markets, Industries and Communities
Labor and supply chains among the biggest challenges facing essential rural industries
DENVER (April 2, 2020)—COVID-19 has brought the U.S. economy to a screeching halt, ushering in a recession in the process. For most businesses, the sudden stop to the economy is more jolting than the financial crisis of 2008 and has forced hard, immediate decisions about employees and finances. According to a new Quarterly report from CoBank’s Knowledge Exchange, COVID-19 has also underscored the critically important nature of agriculture and other industries essential to rural America.
“This quarter will largely define the next year in terms of the economy and how severe the damage caused by the coronavirus will be,” said Dan Kowalski, vice president, Knowledge Exchange, CoBank. “Nearly everyone will be impacted to varying degrees and the pace of the recovery will be uneven. But the economy had been on good footing and it’s entirely possible that we can get back to reasonable strength within a few quarters.”
The U.S. grain sector remains stuck in a rut, with pressure on commodity prices, weakening basis for corn and soybeans in some markets, and export volatility likely over the next two to three months. Since 2020 began, corn prices have declined by 12% and soybeans prices have dropped by 7%.
While crop farming fundamentals remain challenging, ag retailers enter the 2020 growing season on relatively stable footing. Retailers are optimistic for a full agronomy season given pent-up demand for fertilizer and crop protection products following last year’s complicated and wet fall application season.
The U.S. ethanol complex is navigating through an extremely difficult operating environment exacerbated by the recent collapse in crude oil and gasoline prices and a virtual overnight evaporation of demand. Several large players have restructured or exited the business, with more expected to do so over the next three months.
The U.S. chicken industry entered 2020 with optimism largely driven by expectations for renewed exports to China. That focus swiftly changed to the domestic market in early March when the spread of the coronavirus dramatically shifted the U.S. market to at-home eating, boosting chicken demand. Chicken production grew 7.7% in the first two months of 2020.
The U.S. cattle complex has seen a swift and sharp decline in the last month following the drop in global equities and oil prices. Since mid-January, April live cattle futures have fallen by approximately 25%. The beef complex profit pool is shifting in favor of packers at the cost of lower feeding margins. The loss of restaurant and foodservice customers due to COVID-19 will test beef prices this spring.
China’s demand for U.S. pork has set export records, but it hasn’t led to strong prices or profit margins. While international demand has been significantly higher than last year, so has U.S. pork supply. Hog producers are expected to realize negative margins through April, before margins turn to positive territory this summer. To realize strong margins, producers will need strong export growth to continue.
Milk prices have fallen precipitously in recent weeks due to COVID-19. The seasonal increase in milk supplies with the spring flush was met with economic weakness in China and other countries, impacting dairy exports. School closings have impacted fluid milk consumption. Home stockpiling has provided some price support, but not enough to offset the losses related to food service.
Despite strong exports, cotton prices have sunk to new lows on fears of slower global economic growth. U.S. cotton exporters are optimistic of faster export pace following India’s announcement of lockdown into the first half of April, which may impair India’s cotton export pace. Meanwhile, rough rice futures surged to new highs, driven by a surge in retail rice sales and tighter global stocks.
U.S. specialty crop growers are fearing an even tighter labor situation unfolding this spring as processing of new H-2A visa applications in Mexico is impaired by COVID-19 complications. Specialty crops growers have benefited from the surge in produce sales at grocery stores but saw reduced exports due to logistical issues related to COVID-19.
Broad segments of the power and energy sectors are likely to realize falling revenues in Q2 2020 and possibly beyond. Electric utilities will suffer from weakening electricity consumption by the commercial and industrial sectors. Rural water systems will also face challenges during the economic downturn.
The full Quarterly report is available on cobank.com. Each CoBank Quarterly provides updates and an outlook for the Global and U.S. Economic Environment; U.S. Agricultural Markets; Grains, Biofuels and Farm Supply; Animal Protein; Dairy; Other Crops; Specialty Crops and Rural Infrastructure Industries.
About CoBank
CoBank is a $145 billion cooperative bank serving vital industries across rural America. The bank provides loans, leases, export financing and other financial services to agribusinesses and rural power, water and communications providers in all 50 states. The bank also provides wholesale loans and other financial services to affiliated Farm Credit associations serving more than 70,000 farmers, ranchers and other rural borrowers in 23 states around the country.
CoBank is a member of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of banks and retail lending associations chartered to support the borrowing needs of U.S. agriculture, rural infrastructure and rural communities. Headquartered outside Denver, Colorado, CoBank serves customers from regional banking centers across the U.S. and also maintains an international representative office in Singapore.
Servier partners with Innovative Medicines Canada Members to Donate 100,000 Masks to Help Protect Front-Line Healthcare Workers Battling COVID-19
LAVAL, QC, April 2, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - Servier Canada, along with other pharmaceutical companies, members of Innovative Medicines Canada (IMC), are continuing their efforts in the fight against COVID-19 by donating 100,000 N95 masks for front-line healthcare workers battling the virus. The donation is in response to the federal government's request for additional protective equipment.
"As a leading company in Health and Life Sciences, Servier's very first thoughts go to the front-line medical community. Healthcare workers are operating every day within clinics and hospitals to relieve patients suffering from COVID-19, often at the cost of their own safety. Through this donation, we want to help to protect them and to bring our own contribution to the fight against the virus", said Servier Canada's CEO Frederic Fasano.
"Our industry will continue to collaborate with all levels of government, with civil society groups and with each other in unprecedented ways in response to this crisis", said IMC President Pamela Fralick. "Our members are playing a leading role in Canada and around the world in the race to find effective treatments, better diagnostic tools, and to create vaccines to help identify, treat and ultimately, stop the spread of COVID-19", she added.
The donation is one of several initiatives supported by Servier to contribute to the fight against the pandemic on the ground. "In Canada, as well as in many other affected countries, Servier is providing personal protection equipment to hospitals and is making donations to foundations and NGOs. In France, the location of Servier's Global headquarters, many healthcare professionals employed by Servier have volunteered and have been made available to health authorities to join medical staff on the front-line against the virus. We at Servier consider this contribution as part of our mission and responsibility", said Frédéric Fasano. "Servier also puts its best efforts to ensure the continuity of its manufacturing and supply operations in order for its medicines to remain available to Canadian patients who rely on them", he added.
Servier Canada is the Canadian affiliate of Servier Group, an international pharmaceutical company governed by a non-profit foundation, with its headquarters in France (Suresnes). With a strong international presence in 149 countries and a turnover of 4.6 billion euros in 2019, Servier employs 22,000 people worldwide. Entirely independent, the Group reinvests 25% of its turnover (excluding generic drugs) in research and development and uses all its profits for development. Corporate growth is driven by Servier's constant search for innovation in five areas of excellence: cardiovascular, immune-inflammatory and neuropsychiatric diseases, cancer and diabetes, as well as by its activities in high-quality generic drugs. Servier also offers eHealth solutions beyond drug development. Servier has been present in Canada since 1978.
BEACON launches free digital program Stronger Minds to support continuously evolving mental well-being concerns of Canadians through COVID-19 crisis
Sponsored by Manulife and Green Shield Canada,Stronger Minds provides guidance from the extensive team of BEACON psychologists – updated daily in response to everchanging worries
TORONTO, April 2, 2020 /CNW/ - MindBeacon, provider of the leading digital mental and behavioural health therapy service BEACON™, announces the launch of Stronger Minds, created to support all Canadians through heightened stresses related to COVID-19. Available Monday, April 6, the new digital program provides participants with day-to-day guidance from the extensive MindBeacon team of clinical psychologists. Through the BEACON digital platform, Stronger Minds participants will access guidance in the form of short expert Q&A videos, quick reads and resilience-building activities – all focused on protecting our emotional well-being as the COVID-19 crisis progresses. Fresh and useful insights will be provided daily, in response to the evolving worries expressed by Canadians as they participate in the program. Stronger Minds will be offered indefinitely, in recognition this crisis has an uncertain timeline.
Stronger Minds by BEACON is a free program that will be available for all Canadians. This is made possible through support from Manulife and Green Shield Canada (GSC) as part of their commitment to communities through the pandemic crisis. Created to address the specific emotional worries stirred by the pandemic, Stronger Minds is distinct from the existing treatment service offered through BEACON's guided digital therapy (iCBT). Unlike therapy, Stronger Minds requires no assessment to participate. BEACON recognizes that all Canadians are looking for expert-led support without the need to engage in a course of therapy.
"We have seen firsthand that our customers are looking for ways to access mental well-being support and information as we continue to navigate the impacts of a pandemic," says Donna Carbell, Head, Group Benefits, Manulife. "The time to act is now. Our sponsorship of Stronger Minds enables Canadians to access mental health information from their home. Manulife is dedicated to helping people become healthier – financially, physically, mentally and socially."
"During the COVID-19 crisis, we've heard from Canadians right across the country - and mental health challenges have been a common theme," says Joe Blomeley, GSC's EVP, Individual, Public Sector and Mental Health. "It's in our DNA to step up in moments like this and bring high-quality mental health care options within easier reach. BEACON digital therapy has already improved the mental health of thousands of Canadians, and we are excited about the potential of the Stronger Minds program."
"Our MindBeacon team of clinical psychologists, with our collective expertise and experience, makes us well-suited to help people with the challenges that matter through this time – whether it's difficulties with social isolation, supporting struggling family members, worries about financial insecurity, and much more," says Dr. Peter Farvolden, clinical psychologist and Chief Science Officer for BEACON. "Canada is in this together and we're wholeheartedly ready to help Canadians cope through the stressful events of this time, so they can successfully face every day as it comes."
About MindBeacon Group The MindBeacon Group of companies is dedicated to helping Canadians improve their mental well-being to live their best lives. MindBeacon provides evidence-based therapy that is affordable and easy-to-access through BEACON™, the guided digital therapy service (iCBT) which has helped thousands of Canadians struggling with depression, anxiety, insomnia and posttraumatic stress injury (PTSI/PTSD). MindBeacon provides in-person and video therapy through CBT Associates, a leading psychology clinic network.
SOURCE MindBeacon
Psychologists to public: Here's how to stop touching your faces and #flattenthecurve Researchers offer science-backed suggestions for how to kick the habit
HOUSTON – (April 2, 2020) – The average person touches their face 23 times an hour. It's an activity so common most people don't realize when or how much they’re doing it.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, health organizations are urging people to stop touching their faces to stop the spread of the virus and flatten the curve. Jim Pomerantz, a professor of psychological sciences at Rice University and chair of the Psychonomic Society Governing Board, and his fellow members of the society have teamed up to develop a list of five science-backed recommendations for kicking or minimizing this routine habit.
"The thing that's become totally clear, if it wasn't clear already, is that viruses are spread through human behavior," he continued. "Typically we'll do something like shaking someone's hand and then failing to wash our hands properly, followed by touching our faces and then we're off to the races with an infection and symptoms that will show up in 2-14 days. It's much better to prevent an infection than to try to deal with it after the fact, and that's the purpose of our work here."
Absent a vaccine, which won't be ready for some time, Pomerantz said avoiding touching your face is more effective than any other medical interventions for stopping the spread of the virus.
"Rather than taking advice from a neighbor or your grandmother who tells you to take supplements or eat chicken soup when you've got the flu, we were looking for science-based steps that we all can take that are simple, proven to be effective and we can start doing today to reduce the frequency of this behavior," he said.
Pomerantz and his fellow researchers developed a chart of recommendations, which is available online. The recommendations are as follows:
Increase awareness. Ask a partner to tell you when you touch your face, wear perfume or bracelets to remind you not to touch your face, and/or carry a pen and paper to record how many times you touch your face each day.
Help others. Think of the people you are trying to protect by not touching your face, and gently remind others when you notice them touching their face.
Do other things with your hands. Put your hands in your pockets, hold a ball or a deck of cards in your hands, or make fists with your hands for one minute if you bring them near your face.
Change postures. Keep your elbows off the table, sit in chairs without armrests or in the middle of the couch, and sit on your hands if you find it is hard to avoid touching your face.
Practice relaxation techniques. Focus on taking long, slow, deep breaths and on relaxing muscles that feel tense, sit in a quiet place and focus on the present moment rather than the past or future, or spend time in nature at a safe distance from others.
"Many of us have taken a course in introductory psychology where we learned about conditioning and the laws of behavior, and how we can establish and change behavior," Pomerantz said. "We know that this works. And if people put these ideas into practice immediately we're going to see, we hope, some flattening of the curve much more quickly than otherwise."
For more information on the chart or to schedule an interview with Pomerantz, contact Amy McCaig, senior media relations specialist at Rice, at 217-417-2901 or amym@rice.edu.
Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of Architecture, Business, Continuing Studies, Engineering, Humanities, Music, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. With 3,962 undergraduates and 3,027 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 4 for quality of life by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance.
How to Exercise When You Have an Eating Disorder
Trying to overcome an eating disorder can be one of the toughest things that you’ve ever done in your life. While you may be shying away from physical activity, it’s definitely something that you should be investing in during your recovery. Let’s take a look at some of the basics of why exercise is an essential part of your recovery and how you can perform it successfully.
Realize Exercise Effects All Realms of Health
When it comes to your health, there are many areas to focus on. Some of these include mental, emotional, and physical health. Exercise works to enhance all these realms of health during your recovery period. The trick is finding a proper balance between using exercise as a healing aid and overutilizing it and hindering your recovery.
Eliminate Old Beliefs
Many people who have dealt with an eating disorder have created some false beliefs between exercise and weight control. The truth is that while exercise can be utilized to help control weight, it provides so much more. It’s essential to create mental peace. Don’t attribute burning calories to exercise. Rather, consider exercise one of many treatment options for eating disorders.
Look into inpatient programs as well to help you overcome these old beliefs and habits.
Listen to Your Body
Your body is very adept at alerting you of when there’s an issue. The tricky part is actually listening to what your body is telling you. If your body is telling you that it’s tired after 20 minutes of yoga, then stop. Don’t push your body beyond its limit for the sake of getting exercise in. You may find that you need to start your exercise intensity with a slow walk. Then, increase the duration over time. At the beginning, you may not be able to tell when you need to push yourself or rest, so take it slow.
Bring Curiosity to Your Exercise
If you used to spend hours running on the treadmill so you could burn the exact amount of calories you ate, then tracking your exercise is not a great idea. Instead, bring some curiosity to your exercise. Try starting a different type of exercise routine. Yoga is a great form of exercise that can allow you to focus on mastering poses instead of constantly tracking the calories that you burn.
Having an eating disorder can change the way you live your entire life. Overcoming that eating disorder all starts with utilizing exercise as a necessary recovery tool. The above are four great tips that you can implement to turn exercise into a healthy way to overcome your disorder instead of looking at it as a necessity for weight control.
Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan
Shoppers Drug Mart provides free access to mental health program to help Canadians coping with stress
Stress management program available online through SilverCloud Health
TORONTO, April 1, 2020 /CNW/ - Shoppers Drug Mart is making peace of mind a little more accessible to Canadians as they struggle with increased stress in the face of COVID-19. In partnership with SilverCloud Health, the company has opened a virtual stress management program, accessible anywhere from their phones, tablets or computer. The company will cover all associated costs.
"Our purpose is helping Canadians live life well, and these days that means more than ever," said Jeff Leger, President, Shoppers Drug Mart. "With health and financial concerns, isolation, and anxiety rising, this program is designed to treat stress with modern approaches. Hopefully, it brings people peace of mind, and possibly gives them and the healthcare system some relief at a time when both are burdened."
The stress program is a blend of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), positive psychology and mindfulness consisting of eight modules that focus on resilience and cognitive restructuring to help recognize and change negative thinking patterns and behaviours. This program for stress management is adaptive and personalizes therapeutic delivery to the individual. It works to help identify and enhance existing strengths and skills, and build new ones. Built in conjunction with leading clinical and subject matter experts, each module contains text, video and audio clips as well as interactive and engaging activities designed to help challenge and change unhelpful behaviours.
"We are committed to providing impactful mental health support to those in need across Canada and beyond during this unprecedented global crisis," said Ken Cahill, CEO of SilverCloud. "With a whole population being asked to stay home and health systems having to prioritize care, we recognize the heightened need for effective, proven virtual support. Our partnership with Shoppers Drug Mart helps ensure Canadians have tools and techniques available to manage stress and bring balance into their lives during this unprecedented time."
The stress program will be available nationwide by visiting www.shoppersdrugmart.ca and will be free to Canadians until June 15.
About Shoppers Drug Mart: Shoppers Drug Mart is one of the most recognized and trusted names in Canadian retailing. The company is the licensor of full-service retail drug stores operating under the name Shoppers Drug Mart (Pharmaprix in Québec). With almost 1,300 Shoppers Drug Mart and Pharmaprix stores operating in prime locations in each province and two territories, the company is one of the most convenient retailers in Canada. The company also licenses or owns 47 medical clinic pharmacies operating under the name Shoppers Simply Pharmacy (Pharmaprix Simplement Santé in Québec), and provides cosmetic dermatology services at two standalone locations, the Beauty Clinic. As well, the company owns and operates 43 corporate Wellwise by Shoppers Drug Mart stores and an ecommerce site Wellwise.ca, making it the largest Canadian retailer of home health care products and services. In addition to its retail store network, the company owns Shoppers Drug Mart Specialty Health Network Inc., a provider of specialty drug distribution, pharmacy and comprehensive patient support services, and MediSystem Inc., a provider of pharmaceutical products and services to long-term care facilities. Shoppers Drug Mart is an independent operating division of Loblaw Companies Limited.
About SilverCloud Health SilverCloud Health is the world's leading digital mental health company, enabling providers, health plans and employers to deliver clinically validated digital health/therapeutic care that improves outcomes, increases access and scale while reducing costs. The company's multi-award-winning digital mental health platform is a result of over 17 years of clinical research with leading academic institutions. Today, SilverCloud is being used by over 300 organizations globally to meet their populations' mental health needs. Global experts have deeply validated the platform through full randomized control trials and real-world data from over 350,000 SilverCloud users. The platform continues to lead the industry with its effectiveness, engagement, and range of clinical programs that encompasses the spectrum of mental health needs. Learn more at www.silvercloudhealth.com.
SOURCE Shoppers Drug Mart
Managing a Home Hot Zone – How to Self-Quarantine at Home
Please consider sharing this in any of your internal or external outreach communications to your colleagues, clients, employees, or friends and family – anyone you can help.
I am a retired environmental scientist and attorney, with 27 years with the federal government, and another 20 years in industry. I’ve been trained as an emergency medical technician (EMT), nuclear emergency team member, wilderness first aid responder, and was a county civil defense director in Idaho. In my retirement/rewirement, I work at home and write a weekly outdoor/ lifestyle/ environment column for the Tri-City Herald in Kennewick Washington (owned by McClatchy). I am the creator of Presari.
I offer you this curated 2,780-word article for use for free with no attribution required at all. I am available for interviews and discussions by phone if you wish. Please send me an email or call and ask me any questions at all and I’ll try to help you.
It identifies the 30+ key actions recommended by the CDC and WHO on how to deal with having someone with coronavirus self-quarantine at one's home.
It makes it easy to understand with crisp clean DIY actions. Here is a link to the free seven-page pdf file download. The CDC references are provided. The photo is from a free photo from Unsplash.
People can take as many of these actions as they can to protect themselves and their loved one, at home. The goal is to help the people we can help the most.
Warning: This is hard to do perfectly, but the more disinfection people do, the lower the risks will be.
Bottom line: Clean. Touch. Clean again. Everywhere. Every time. Everyone.
Feel free to use it in whole or part with or without attribution. The goal is to help as many people as possible survive and thrive.
A National Emergency has been declared. Coronavirus cases are rising. The likelihood that you may soon be exposed is increasing. You’ll need to know what to do if you do get exposed and have to self-quarantine.
Assume someone in your home now has the flu or coronavirus. The germs can go from one family member to another. What are you going to do to reduce the risks to everyone else?
There are numerous ways you can reduce the risks and try to keep the flu from spreading. This expanding list is derived from CDC and WHO guidance and from good ideas from other sources. The primary references are provided at the end.
A lot of this is plain and common sense. Some of it is critical personal hygiene best practices as applied to home health care and self-quarantine situations.
People are being asked to self-quarantine due to coronavirus or exposure to someone who has tested positive need to isolate themselves for a recommended 14-day period.
Block and Tackle - Identify and Isolate the Threat
This is the key core concept.
To protect yourself at home requires you to identify every primary - direct pathway and take action to segregate and eliminate the risks, block and tackle style, as in football.
First - The objective is to identify the source of the risk and then block the pathway to prevent the transport of germs from the source to you or anyone else.
The first source is an infected person. The person needs to be isolated and treated and kept away from other people.
Second – The second objective is to clean and disinfect every surface they have potentially contaminated.
You then need to identify every possible secondary touch point, places where germs may have been left for you to find, pick up, carry with you and then ingest.
Once again block and tackle is the way to break the pathway and isolate and deal with the threat.
Flu and coronavirus can be sprayed in the air, travel in the air and drop on liquid and solid surfaces, where they can survive for up to eight hours. This is why it is easy to pick up the virus germs and get sick without realizing it. Germs from an infected and contagious person can be left on any surface that they touch. This includes food and water, as well as every physical item in a room.
The most common touch points are doorknobs, light switches, cell phones, desk and table tops, tv remote controls, water faucets, toilets, sinks, and items near their heads in the bedroom they sleep in. But it also includes chairs, couches, glass, mirrors, pencils, paper, the floor, the carpets, books, even plant leaves, and yes, animals.
What do you do if you need to self-quarantine and manage a real quarantine situation – a Hot Zone -- at home?
Get a flu shot if you haven’t had one. It will not prevent you from getting coronavirus but it may help you from getting the flu. It will also build up your antigens and antibodies and which can reduce the severity of your illness if you do get sick.
Self-monitor the healthy people. Check the temperatures of healthy people twice a day. Be on the lookout for symptoms and changes in people who come into contact with a sick person. Remain alert for fever, coughing, fatigue, weakness, lethargy, and any difficulty breathing. If someone starts exhibiting symptoms, then they should self-isolate, limit contact with others, call their doctor or health-care providers, or the local health department.
Plan what you need. Make a list of all the basic necessities you have on hand and what you will need for two to as many as four weeks. Build a shopping list. Shop online, pay with a credit card, and have it delivered. If you cannot do that, call a friend or family member who can and send someone the list by email or text, have them shop for you, prepay or repay as needed, and get it delivered it to your door or porch.
Make arrangements and learn more about how to work from home. Think out what you need to do and go digital everything. Call your boss, employees, co-workers, set up computers, your dogwalkers, whatever you need. Identify them and contact them to make appropriate arrangements.
Use social media wisely. There areseveral Flatten the Curve Facebook pages that operate at the local or state level. They have turned into places where people post good ideas and share helpful guidance and information with each other. Join one and get engaged.
Create a list of emergency contacts. Create a list of the key people you will need to have on call. This includes your spouse, family, best friends, doctor, insurance company, the hospital, school officials, day care providers, county health department, and police. Place these numbers in your cell phone. Duplicate the list and share it with a close friend, family member, or companion who will help you if the need arises.
Create a Family Emergency Plan Handbook – Get a notebook or use your computer to create a list of the things that need to be done. Create a checklist and turn it into an action plan. Identify the chores that need to be done, the actions that need to be completed, and how frequently the actions needed to be completed. Identify people to take responsibility by name. Place the plan on the kitchen table or share it with them so that every member of the family knows what to do.
Get appropriate help if conditions worsen. Seek prompt medical attention if your illness is worsening (e.g., difficulty breathing). But do not go without calling first. Call your doctor. Before seeking care, call your healthcare provider and tell them that you have, or are being evaluated for, COVID-19. Place a facemask and disposable gloves on both you and on the sick person if responders or anyone else comes to help you. Do the same if you go to an urgent care or other health care facility to keep other people from getting infected or exposed.
Alert the local health department. Ask your healthcare provider to call the local, county, or state health department. Persons who are placed under active monitoring or facilitated self-monitoring should follow instructions provided by their local health department or occupational health professionals, as appropriate.
Stay home. Formal quarantines, if ordered by law, may result in legal enforcement actions if violated. That means no shopping, no dog walking, no health clubs, and no restaurants. You can order foods from restaurants and grocery stores and pay by credit card, but they will likely require a no contact delivery -- the food will have to be paid for in advance and left at the door.
Isolate the sick person. Healthy people need to avoid the sick person and do their best to keep them from infecting anyone. They are usually required to stay home and away from others for at least 24 hours after their fever returns to normal. People who have been exposed to coronavirus are being asked to self-quarantine for up to 14 days. People who are sick should not go anywhere they can spread the illness. This means they must stay in one place in the house and avoid going into rooms that other people will use.
Active monitoring by health caregivers. Caregivers or family members should monitor and record symptoms and patient temperatures in writing. If you are not able to visit in person, then use calls, or videos, or text messages several times a day to ensure you monitor effectively.
Cover your mouth. Flu and coronavirus spread by the release of virus-laden droplets from the mouth and nose of an infected person. These droplets can be inhaled directly by another person. Use tissues to cover your mouth and nose when you cough, sneeze, blow your nose, or spit up phlegm. Make sure you throw the used tissues away. Immediately wash your hands and face. If you don’t have tissues, sacrifice and use an old sock as a germ catcher. Place it in a plastic bag so that the germs on the sock don’t contaminate anything the sock is placed on. Throw them away when done.
Avoid touching your nose, mouth and eyes. Do not place your fingers in your mouth. Do place your fingers in your nose. Do not touch the area around your lips. Do not place your fingers in your mouth. Do not moisten your fingers with your tongue and then touch something else. These are incredibly hard habits to break. Learning to keep your hands away from your face and mouth can be very difficult. Whatever gets on your fingers and goes into your mouth can infect you. Whatever you touch is now on your fingers and hands and can contaminate whatever you touch and infect other people.
Wash your hands and face frequently. Use warm water and soap. Scrub for at least 20 seconds. Rinse and dry with a dedicated hand towel or use paper towels. Color code them so it’s easy to keep towels separate from other people. Dispose of the paper towels immediately after use. Wash every time you use the bathroom. Wash before eating and after eating. Wash after coming home from another location where other people were encountered.
Use alcohol-based sanitizers. After washing, use some sanitizer, making sure it is at least 60 percent alcohol. Set up a sanitizer station in the bathroom, in the kitchen, and by the doors and entryways. Sanitize after every contact with a potentially contaminated surface.
Limit contract and avoid being in close proximity with family members who are sick. Keep the sick person at home. Give them a dedicated bedroom and bathroom. Limit close contact and touching between the sick person, pets, and other members of the family. Isolate the sick person and avoid letting them sleep in the same room as anyone else.
Ban visitors, outsiders, workers, or guests. Do not let healthy friends, relatives, employees, contractors or visitors, come inside your house if someone is sick. Do not come closer than 8 feet to a sick person. Do not let delivery people, repair people, housekeepers or dog walkers in the house.
Use face masks and gloves. Have the sick person wear a face mask and disposable gloves when other people come into their room or come close. Have caregivers wear a face mask and use latex gloves when entering the room of the sick person or come close to them with food and medications. Masks and gloves need to be treated as contaminated after use and disposed of properly. Wash your hands after touching contaminated masks and gloves.
Avoid touching and sharing personal and household items. Give the sick person their own washcloths, towels, dishes, clothes, handkerchiefs, toys, utensils, toothbrushes, hairbrushes, medicines, water bottles, toothpaste, soaps, cups, glasses, bedding, blankets, sheets, pillows, pillowcases, - anything they contact or use.
Segregate food and personal items. Get a box and place food for the sick person with their name on it so no one else touches it. Keep others people’s food away from anything the sick person is using. Do not let them use the refrigerator if possible. Clean and disinfect as soon as they do touch anything.
Avoid sharing common items. Move other people’s personal items out of the same rooms being used by the sick person. Keep everything separate to avoid contaminating clean products, clothes, and food items. Switch to paper plates and utensils for the sick person. Throw all leftovers away.
Limit contacts with pets and animals. The research is showing that viruses are carried on wet surfaces and this this includes the fur and bodily fluids of pets. Restrict contact with pets and animals. Avoid letting dogs and cats snuggle, kiss, or lick you. Wash your pet’s feet frequently. If you or others come in contact with your pets, they should wash their hands immediately.
Create home disinfectant solutions in quantity. CDC Guidancehttps://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prepare/cleaning-disinfection.html states that for disinfection, diluted household bleach solutions, alcohol solutions with at least 70% alcohol, and most common EPA-registered household disinfectants should be effective. Diluted household bleach solutions can be used if appropriate for the surface. Follow manufacturer’s instructions for application and proper ventilation. Check to ensure the product is not past its expiration date. Never mix household bleach with ammonia or any other cleanser. Unexpired household bleach will be effective against coronaviruses when properly diluted. Prepare a bleach solution by mixing 5 tablespoons (1/3rd cup) bleach per gallon of water or 4 teaspoons bleach per quart of water.
Clean, disinfect and dispose of anything contaminated. Treat everything the sick person touches and uses as contaminated. Pay special attention to anything that has blood, spit, phlegm, stool, or any other bodily fluids on them. Keep their garbage separate and away from others. Place their garbage inside a second plastic bag and tie it closed when done. Wear disposable gloves when handling contaminated items, keeping them away from your body. Wash your hands immediately after removing and disposing of the gloves.
Avoid being in common areas. Do not have the sick person in close proximity to healthy family members and friends. This means they should not be lying down on the couch wrapped up in a blanket watching TV in the family room with everyone else nearby. Do not eat meals or even snacks in the same room at the same time or in close proximity to the sick person. The risk of infecting others is dramatically higher when a sick person is close to people when they are eating food.
Clean and disinfect everything. Germ-laden droplets can be sprayed, fall on, and adhere to any surface. Go through your house room by room. Identify and then clean every frequently-touched surface. Give special attention to the kitchen on every surface and every item which is used where food is prepared or eaten. Common hot spots for germs include: the sink handles, refrigerator and stove handles and knobs, kitchen sponges, countertops, cutting boards., desktops, light switches, door handles, toilets, bathtubs and showers, and so on. Microwave your sponge on high for one minute or just grab a new one. Use the high temperature sanitize settings on your dishwasher. Wash dishes and silverware thoroughly with soap and dry carefully.
Check with your local health department. Find out how to deal with contaminated items and property. Check to get the latest guidance if you are considering taking contaminated clothes, bedding or laundry items to a communal laundry or sending them to a commercial laundromat.
Wash the sick person’s personal items carefully. If someone in the house is sick take special care when washing their things. While you don’t need to wash their clothes separately. But do separate their clothing in the room they are staying and do not scoop up their clothes in an armful and holding them close to your body, your clothes, and your mouth and nose. Wear gloves and avoid touching their clothes as you do the laundry. Use laundry soap and dry on a hot setting. Always wash your hands after handling dirty laundry.
Warn visitors. Do not let healthy people into a sick home. Tell them not to come in. Do not let a sick person come in contact with healthy people. Limit contacts with the sick person to the maximum degree possible.
Clean. Touch. Clean again. Carry disinfecting disposable wipes and spray bottles with you. Clean something before you touch it. Then touch it. When done, clean it again so you reduce the risks for the next person. Protect yourself. Protect others. Leave everything cleaner than when you go there.
Discontinuing home isolation. Stay at home until you have been instructed to leave: Patients with confirmed coronavirus should remain in home isolation until the risk of secondary transmission to others is thought to be low. Talk to your healthcare provider: The decision to discontinue home isolation precautions should be made on a case-by-case basis, in consultation with healthcare providers and state and local health departments.
Paul Krupin is a retired environmental scientist and attorney. He trained as an EMT, nuclear emergency team member, wilderness first aid responder, and was a county civil defense director in Idaho. He writes for the Tri-City Herald in Kennewick Washington. He can be reached at pjkrupin@gmail.com
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